Mediterranean Style Tuna Lasagna

Featured Food Storage or Pantry Item: Tuna Fish

I am so in love with the sauce in this lasagna. It may just be my new favorite way to use canned tuna. I know it sounds scary. Tuna in lasagna? But the Italians often add tuna to their pasta dishes. Yes, canned tuna. Now granted they use tuna canned in oil and I don't buy my tuna in oil but there is an easy remedy for that in this recipe.

This recipe is so easy and the homemade sauce (which is also simple) tastes so much better than the canned spaghetti sauce. I promise you will love this different way to use your tuna. Plus it is a cheaper version of lasagna especially if you buy your tuna on sale like I do. Raise your hand if you get sick of tuna casserole. I mean if I had to live off of Tuna I would be tired of all those cream based recipes out there. That is why I am so excited that it can be made into a tasty red sauce for lasagna.

Now I played with a recipe I found on the internet and I found that this sauce really only makes enough for a half lasagna -- 6 hefty servings. (which is perfect for my family of 5). Double this recipe if you want to make a bigger lasagna.

8 No boil lasagna noodles
2 Cans tuna (in oil or water)
1 Tb of Olive Oil if using tuna canned in water
1 green or yellow bell pepper (I actually used a seeded anaheim and it turned out great)
2 cloves of garlic (chopped)
1 can crushed tomatoes (12 oz)
2 TB basil
2 TB of Italian Seasoning
1 Tsp of Crushed Red pepper
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 eggs
1 carton of part skim
Ricotta (smaller carton)
1 Cup of shredded white or medium cheddar
1/8 Cup shredded parmesan cheese.

Heat oven to 350 degrees farenheit.

Heat oil from tuna can or the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add chopped garlic to olive oil and cook for about 1 minute.

Add tuna and chopped pepper to the oil. Heat through and add crushed tomatoes, crushed red pepper and 3/4 of the basil and 3/4 of the Italian seasonings. Add chicken broth and simmer for 10 minutes or until partly reduced and thickened.

Mix ricotta and eggs.

Layer igredients in a 9x9 pan. 2 Noodles, sauce, ricotta mixture, a small handful of cheddar cheese. Repeat until you reach the top of dish. Top layer should be noodles, sauce, ricotta mixture about a half a cup of cheese, parmesan cheese and remaining basil and italian seasoning. (In the picture you will see that I did not top my last noodle layer with sauce. The topw was too crunchy. Don't do that.)

Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.

Cheesy Tuna Broccoli Crepes

Featured Food Storage: Tuna Fish
Suggested Food Storage or Pantry Item: Cheese Powder (Morning Moos available at Wal-Mart)

First, I know that I have fallen off the blogging wagon but during Christmas I was busy baking and playing. But now Christmas is over and I am realizing that no matter how hard I tried I still went over budget. Therefore, it is time to get back to cooking from the pantry and the food storage a little more religiously. Maybe you are looking at your tuna fish or your pantry staples with a little more appreciation. How can you bring delicious to the table on a tight food budget this year? I hope that in 2010 I can continue to bring you economical meals that will get you through the thin times.

And so I bring you a recipe that I am ridiculously proud of. It is sooo cheap to make and yet it is just a little bit of fancy. I mean seriously, when doesn't the word "crepe" class up the joint a little bit. Crepes are really an economical and versatile dish. I love a good dessert crepe but I also love a dinner crepe. I made these crepes a little more savory by changing out the regular butter for some of my homemade herb butter from the freezer storage. I also left out the sugar. 8 filled dinner crepes came in under $5.

Instead of making my own cheese sauce from fresh cheese, I decided to give the cheddar powder sitting in my pantry a try. I mean what is the good of food storage that sits on the shelf. I have to say that the sauce from the cheddar powder worked great in this dish. I used Morning Moos brand because that is what I had. I am going to include both the regular cheese sauce recipe and the recipe using the cheese powder blend.

Don't be intimidated by the multiple steps in this recipe. As my eight-year-old would say it really is "easy peasy, lemon squeezy."

Crepes -- This is my favorite fail safe recipe for crepes. They turn out fantastic every time.
Savory version
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
1/2 Cup flour
3/4 cup milk
2 Tb butter, melted ( I used herb butter to give it a little gourmet twist)
Vegetable oil

With an electric mixer on medium beat the egg, egg yolk flour and 1/2 cup of the milk until well blended. Beat in melted herb butter and remaining milk to form a smooth batter. Chill for at least 30 minutes.

To cook the crepes, heat a lightly oiled crepe pan or 8' nonstick skillet to low/medium heat. Drop batter by 1/8 cupfuls onto pan while turning pan to spread out banner in a thin, even and circular layer.

Cook until underside of crepes begins to brown and then carefully lift and flip the crepe to lightly brown the other side. Stack crepes on a plate.


Cheese Sauce
Morning Moos
1 cup hot water
1/2 cup of Morning Moos cheese powder blend
1/8 cup of milk

Gradually combine cheese mix with hot water and milk. Stir together until smooth. Set aside

Fresh Cheese Sauce
1 1/2 Cups milk
1 1/2 Cups shredded American cheese
1/4 Cup chopped onion
3 Tb butter
3 Tb all purpose flour
1 Tb prepared mustard
1/8 tsp pepper
In a medium sauce cook onion in butter until tender but not brown. Stir in flour, mustard and pepper. Add milk all at once. Cook and stir until thick and bubbly. Add cheese. Stir and cook till melted. Remove from heat.

Crepe Filling
1 ten oz. bag of frozen chopped broccoli, cooked according to directions
3 cans (6 1/2 oz each) of tuna, drained and broken into chunks
Cheese sauce

Combine tuna, broccoli and 3/4 cup of the cheese sauce. Spoon about 3 tablespoons of tuna filling down center of each crepe. Roll up. Place crepes seam side down in a baking dish. Bake covered in a 375 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until heated through. Reheat remaining cheese sauce, (add additional milk if needed) Pour over crepes.

Asian Tuna Casserole

Featured Food Storage or Pantry Items: Tuna Fish, instant ramen noodle packs, Cream of Mushroom Soup

I know what you are thinking: Another Tuna Fish Casserole recipe. Yep. But this one has an Asian twist and since I am always looking for some variety for my canned tuna, I thought this would be a great addition, especially if you keep those instant ramen packs in your pantry. I don't actually stock up on these. But they are so ridiculously cheap that even if you just use the noodles without the seasoning packet you are saving a bundle.

The family verdict on this recipe: First, I really liked it. It was lower fat than my standard tuna casserole and it had some crunchiness from the cashews and celery that I appreciated. My husband didn't love it (but he still liked it) because he is not an Asian noodle fan or a nuts in his casserole fan. My daughters liked it but they ate around the mushrooms. So, if you like all those things you may find this tuna casserole version a tasty change of pace.

TUNA AND CASHEW BAKE

From the One Pot Meals cookbook (which is good cookbook stuff, by the way)

3 cans of tuna fish, drained (the original recipe called for 2 cans)

1/2 Cup sliced mushrooms

1 Cup unsalted cashews

3 scallions or green onions trimmed and sliced

3 stalks celery, sliced

4 packages ramen noodles, flavor packet discarded Cooked according to package directions and drained.

1 can cream of mushroom soup

4 Tb water

1 Tb soy sauce

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place tuna in a bowl and break apart. Add mushrooms, cashes, onions, celery and 2/3 of the cooked noodles. Stir gently until fillings are distributed evenly in the noodles. Spoon mixture into casserole dish.

Pour soup into a separate bowl and add water and soy sauce. Stir to combine. Pour soup mixture over casserole. Top with the remaining noodles, sprinkle with pepper. Bake for 45 minutes.

Salsa Tuna Sandwich --Open Faced

Featured Pantry/Food Storage: Salsa, Tuna Fish

This recipe was so simple to make I am almost embarrassed to post it. But, I know there are others like me with whole cases of tuna fish in their pantries. And frankly, I get tired of the same old tuna sandwich. Plus, I wanted something more low fat. If you are in the same tuna rut as me, this sandwich is just the tuna ticket and I am proud to say it is 80 percent pantry/food storage friendly. Don't you dare check my math. I married an accountant so I didn't have to do math all the time.

Here's an idea for your next tuna sandwich.

1 can of tuna fish (not oil packed)

1/4 cup of salsa

1 slice whole grain bread (even better if it is homemade)

3 leaves of spinach

mozzarella slices

Combine salsa and tuna fish. Layer bread with spinach, tuna mixture and mozzarella.

Easy, flavorful, pantry friendly and yummy.

Italian Tuna Melt

Featured Pantry Items: Tuna fish, olives, artichoke hearts. One of the reasons I love Italian food is because it is so pantry and garden friendly. Italian food thrives on fresh garden food or pantry staples. I am always in the market for a new tuna recipe. I have a lot of tuna storage and I get bored of the same old thing. When my sweet friend brought me a loaf of sun dried tomato Tuscan style bread I knew I had to try Giada de Laurentiis' Artichoke Tuna Panini from her cookbook Giada's Family Dinners. I changed it up a little bit because I don't usually store tuna packed in oil, which is what her recipe calls for. I also like my tuna sandwiches all melty. I have some fresh mozzarella that was begging to be used and I believe tuna and cheese are good partners, so I added some fresh mozzarella. You don't need to add cheese to this sandwich but a mild cheese makes it all the better. You can also use any hearty bread loaf or ciabatta of your choice. For me the sun dried tomato bread was the the ideal earthy, savory and hearty choice.

You will also see from the following photos, that I had to simplify half the recipe for the kids. Their tastebuds are not sophisticated enough to appreciate artichokes or an olive mayonnaise spread. They got tuna fish, mayo and cheese. Poor things. They don't understand what they are missing.

Recipe
1 small container of chopped black olives
2 Tb olive oil
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp lemon juice or lemon zest ( I didn't have lemon zest and the lemon juice worked just fine)
1/4 Cup mayonnaise
2 (6 oz) cans of tuna, drained
1 (12 oz) jar or 1/2 Cup of marinated artichoke hearts, coarsely chopped
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 loaf ciabatta or other country style bread ( I used a sun dried tomato)
1 tomato diced
7 to 10 slices fresh mozzarella or other mild cheese

Preheat oven to 500 degrees
In a food processor combine olives, oil, garlic and lemon juice or zest. Process until smooth. I left mine a little chunky. Blend in the mayo and set aside. In a medium bowl toss tuna, artichoke hearts, lemon juice and pepper. Leave tuna in small chunks.

Hollow out the bottom and top of bread loaf until each side resembles a boat. Spread olive mayo over both pieces of bread and fill bottom half of bread with tuna mixture. Drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with chopped tomatoes and top with mozzarella slices.


Place top of bread on bottom and press down. Place on cookie sheet and bake until cheese is melted. Remove from oven and slice bread into 2 to 3" sandwiches.

Tip: Use the bread chunks removed from loaf for croutons. Place on a plate and loosely cover with parchment paper for a day or two. They make a great salad addition a day or two later. Also, if you love artichoke hearts as much as I do stock up or buy them in bulk. I have a gallon of them in my refrigerator at all times. Seriously, give me some tomatoes, artichoke hearts and fresh mozarella and I could survive for a long time.

Creamy Tuna Casserole -- In Honor of Case Lot Sales

The case lot sales have begun in my neck of the woods and I just came home with around 20 cans of tuna fish. So yes, Tuna Casserole may be a cliche food storage meal but my family considers it comfort food. Weird, I know. I have tried several recipes over the years in an effort to find the right combination of tuna, creaminess and flavor. Once I modified this recipe, originally by Kraft, I never turned back. I never cease to be amazed at how excited my husband and children become once they get a glance of tuna casserole. I am equally astonished at how many times I go back for seconds.

Recipe:
1/2 Tb garlic powder
1/8 C minced dried onions
1/2 tsp salt
dash of pepper
1 Can cream of mushroom soup
1 1/2 C of milk
1 C frozen peas
2 Cups cooked rice or 1 1/2 cups of instant rice, uncooked
2 cans (6 oz each) of tuna
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1/4 C seasoned bread crumbs
1 Tb margarine or butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Mix soup milk and peas in medium saucepan. Bring to boil on medium-high heat, stirring occasionally.
Add 1/2 C cheese, tuna, rice, onions, and seasonings. Mix lightly and spoon into 2 quart casserole dish. Sprinkle with cheese. Top with breadcrumbs and dot with butter.
Bake 20 minutes or until heated through.